Official Statistics

Due to the coronavirus illness (COVID-19) we anticipate that there might be some changes in terms of our regular statistical production. The current disruption to Scotland and the rest of the UK could affect the quality of some of our statistics, such as lower accuracy, or it could mean there is less detail available, such as fewer local and regional breakdowns. In some cases, the production of some data series may need to be suspended. Alternatively, we may find there are advantages to using other data sources.

Decisions will be made on a case by case basis, taking into account what information is currently relevant given the situation, with the three pillars of the Code of Practice for Statistics (Trustworthiness, Quality and Value) guiding our decisions. Giving everyone access to statistics at the same time remains a fundamental principle of the Code, but where this cannot be maintained we will be open and transparent about this and any other potential effects on our statistics. These decisions will be underpinned by the Office for Statistics Regulation's guidance on Changes to statistical outputs during the coronavirus outbreak.

We will keep you informed as developments unfold. We remain committed to providing the best and most accurate information we can, serving the public good at a time when it is needed the most.

A variety of information on staff employed in NHSScotland is collected centrally, an overview of which can be found in the dashboards and tables currently available on Turas Data Intelligence. The information collected and presented within this section is used by NES and NHS Boards to support local, regional and national workforce planning, and will only be used and disclosed in connection with these purposes.

Previous quarterly Workforce publications have been released as National Statistics. NHS Education for Scotland (NES) became an accredited provider of Official Statistics in December 2019. For the publication released on 3 December 2019, NES voluntarily applied the UK Statistics Authority’s Code of Practice for Statistics. See below for further details.

NES has worked to ensure full continuity in the delivery of the NHS Workforce quarterly statistics according to the three pillars of the code of practice.

Trustworthiness

Having confidence in the people and organisations that produce statistics and data

NES has a strong background in producing workforce statistics and has recently expanded its team of analysts. Several members of the new NES data team have previously worked either in the ISD Workforce Intelligence team or in other ISD teams responsible for producing National Statistics. They have brought knowledge and experience of the data and a firm grasp of the requirements for producing official and national statistics.

Throughout the transition period, NES has maintained contact with key NSS and ISD colleagues involved in workforce intelligence and workforce information systems.

The Head of Profession for Statistics for NHS NSS, NHS24 and the Scottish Ambulance Service is now also Head of Profession for NES.

NES receives support and training from the NSS ISD Statistical Governance Team

Quality

Using data and methods that produce assured statistics

Throughout these early stages of the transfer of responsibilities NES has worked closely with colleagues in ISD in order to

Shadow colleagues in the ISD Workforce Intelligence team

Study and discuss the standard operating procedures relating to each aspect of data processing and analysis

Understand and continue to apply the quality assurance processes to the input and output data

Become familiar with data systems and the data processing code base

NES has used the same data sources used by ISD for publishing workforce statistics prior to the transfer of responsibilities. The ISD Standard Operating processes have also been adhered to, and the existing codebase and processing tools have been used and only modified to improve performance or to implement ongoing, operational improvements

Value

Producing statistics that support society’s need for information

NES has produced all the quarterly statistics updates expected by stakeholders and in the established reporting formats. NES has begun to work with various stakeholder and project groups who would previously have been supported by ISD. This will ensure NES remains informed about stakeholder interests and priorities and can be responsive to changes and new requirements, as well as leading innovation and improvement in close consultation with current and potential users.